page 10
daily nebraskan
Wednesday, march 1, 1978
Huskers toss Cowboys aside 71-63; Missouri next
A,
The Huskers have earned a trip to
Kansas City to play in the semifinals of
the Big Eight Conference postseason
tournament. Last night's 71-63 victory
over Oklahoma State University in the
Sports Complex puts UNL among the
final four Big Eight squads.
The Huskers were led by junior guard
Brian Banks who contributed 20 points.
Center Carl McPipe warmed up in the
second half and added 18 points to the
Husker total.
Banks said it was an exciting game
even though it was the fourth time the
two schools have met this season.
"We played a lot better this time,"
Banks said. "This year's team has a lot
more heart."
Senior Terry Novak closed out his
home-court career with six points and
six rebounds. The senior from Lincoln
received a standing ovation as the play
ers were introduced and received
another at the end of the game.
"I was pretty appreciative of the
ovation," Novak said. "I looked at my
dad and thought of him and his last
game and remembered reading clippings
of his last game."
Novak's father, Tom was an All
American football player at Nebraska
from 1949 to 1951.
"We knew at the beginning of the
year we had a chance to be good,"
Novak said. "We made believers of
people. I was proud to make the come
backs the team did this season."
The Huskers will play the University
of Missouri in Friday's semifinal game.
The Tigers beat Iowa State University
Tuesday night to advance to the semi
finals. UNL head coach Joe Cipriano said
Friday's game would be a different
brand of basketball than the Oklahoma
State game.
"I'm sure Missouri will remember our
last game and our players will remember
the lasf one too," Cipriano said.
"Missouri has a lot of quickness and
they fast break a lot."
In the two teams' last meeting the
Tigers bombed UNL 74-52 in Columbia,
Missouri.
"They've got to be pretty high right
now," Cipriano said. "They are setting
themselves up for a strong finish. Clay
Johnson and Stan Ray are two fine ball
players." Novak said it didn't matter to him
who the Huskers played.
"I'm just happy to go to Kansas
City," Novak said, "it doesn't matter
who we play." I just want to make the
finals and make a run at whoever is
there with us.
"Any game could be my last, so 1
look forward to all them."
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Photos by Ted Kirk
Fan defends tournament migrations, letter jacket medals
It seems the Feb. 17 column about the
annual high school migration to UNL
during state tournaments rubbed a few
people the wrong way.
Marty Meyer is one angry 16-year-old
from one of those "exotic sounding"
places -Madrid (Mad 'rid as in Nebraska
not Muh' drid, as in Spain).
Marty (his name is Mart'n, but he cut
it short to Marty) believes the column
stereotyped those high schpolers from
places like Venango and Lodgepole.
I jim 7 mike I
komccarthy
Marty may have been the wrong guy to
pick on. He is 6-foot4 and 220 pounds.
Very big for a 16-year-old. But he seems to
as articulate as he is big when presenting
his defenses for removing the stereotypes.
Says Marty about "those shiny medals
worn on letter jackets, "I suppose
some of those shiny little medals come
easy, but most of the guys I know worked
hard, trained hard, and dieted for months
just to have a shot at one. I suppose we
do display them proudly."
As far as fake ID's go. Marty said he
does not need one when he comes to
Lincoln, because he doec net drink. Marty
said he also is not "impressed v ith tall
buildings," he has been to the city before.
Marty provides equally sound logic
when describing the friends and parents
who inevitably follow state tourney
bound teams.
"My mom and brothers and even my
sister traveled quite a few miles to follow
the team and give us support. My dad, for
the most part, was at home taking care of
farm chores. He did get to state while
my older brother did chores. You see,
for farm folks, who are too busy for
summer trips, that is their yearly vacation;
a whole four days."
We are not totally unsympathetic to
Marty's complaints. Some of our best
friends are from' down on the farm (so to
speak). And yes Marty, we have been to a
barber in the recent past.
Perhaps Marty is an exception to the
rule.
One of us is from a Madrid-type town
and vividly recalls the annual migration.
And with the girl's state tourney this week
and the boy's tourney next week, one can
see history repeating itself.
The trip to Lincoln was our one big
chance to live another life, away from
home and away from the parents: like
getting wasted on three beers, like mixing
too, too many spirits, like spending hours
at McDonald's and enjoying the delicacy of
a Big Mac.
Many hours were spent looking for a
fake ID, and even though you knew yuu
would never use it, that was not impor
tant. Finding one was half the fun. Using
it was half the terror.
Marty, however, didn't exactly consider
the column a welcome mat to high
schoolers.
Says Marty: "I'm sure that when some
of us consider college, well remember
this."
Our welcome mat is out on the step and
we think Marty would like UNL. We've
been here for a combined seven years and
we think it is a great place to study as well
as a great place to do a lot of other things.
There's a good chance Marty might be
rolling into town today. Madrid-Wheat-land's
girls basketball team will be in Lin
coln to play in the state tournament.
Even Lodgepole's girls made it to the big
tourney. Lodgepole's boys team has a
shot as well when they meet Curtis Medi
cine Valley in a regional test.
Welcome to the big city, folks.
Banks named All Big 8
Brian Banks, UNL's play-making
guard, was voted to the United Press
International All Big Eight basketball
team and will join three other guards
and one center.
Iowa State University's Dean Uthoff,
a 6 foot 1 1 inch, 245 pound sophomore
center, joined teammate Andrew Parker.
The junior guard was the Big Eight's
leading scorer this eason with a 22.6
average. Other first-team selections in
included senior guard Mike Evans of
Kansas State University and freshman
guard Darnell Valentine of league
champion Kansas University.
Banks, a 6 foot 155 pound
Hammond. Ind. native, averaged 14.2
points while guarding the Husker
opponent's top guards throughout the
season.
Evans was the only unanimous
choice of the 24 member UPI panel.
Valentine was one vote short of unani
mous, Parker two votes short and Banks
and Uthoff each four votes shy.
Second team selections included
senior center Ken Koenigs of Kansas,
senior forward Gay Johnson of the
University of Missouri, senior forward
Olus Holder of Oklahoma State, junior
guard John McCulIough of Oklahoma
and sophomore forward Curtis Redding
of Kansas State.
